Air-conduit for hydraulic air-compressors.



PATEN'IED OCT. 6, I903 -W."0. WBBBER. AIR GO NDUIT FOR HYDRAULIC AIROOMPRBSSORS;

APPLIOATIOH FILED SEPT. 13, 1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N0 MODEL.

WITNESSES:

in 44. v

No. 740,496. PATENTED OCT. 6, 1903.

W. 0. WEBBER'.

AIEGONDUIT FOR HYDRAULIC AIR COMPRESSORS.

'APPLIOATION FILED SEPTIC 13, 1902. N0 MODEL. I 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Wdmsses: I Izwcriior:

UNITED STATES] Patented October 6, 1903.

PATENT OF ICE,

Al-R-CONDUIT FOR HYDRAULIC AIR-C OMPRESSORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 740,496, dated October 6, 1908.

Application filed September 13, 1902. Serial No, 123,275. (No model.)

and No. 659,270, October 9, 1900, granted to myself, and while I do not claim the invention of a hydraulic air-compressing apparatus in its broad sense I do desireto claim the specific details of construction which comprise the following improvements: first,

the construction of air-outlet conduits leading from air-inlet chambers so arranged as to admit of horizontal adjustment in order to vary the amount of space intervening between such adjacently disposed conduits, and thus regulate and control the amount of water passing between these conduits.

Reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar characters represent the corresponding parts in all the views, Figure 1 is a horizontal plan showing the disposition of the air-conduits in relation to each other and to the main inlet-chambers. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on a line 2 2 of Fig. 1, the left half showing the horizontal-conduits in the position giving the greatest space between them, the right half showing the same conduits in the position when there is no passage between them. Fig. 3 is a vertical section at right angles to Fig. 2 passing vertically through the hinge of-one of the airconduits.

A and A are submerged air-inlet chambers of rectangular form. a, a, a and a are upwardly-projecting large inlets admitting air to the chambers A and A.

B and B, B B B B B B and B are horizontally-disposed air-conduits extending from main air-chambers A and A, with intervening spaces between each of these bars for nected to upwardly-extending lifting-rods g g, 850. These lifting-rods are preferably furnished with adjustable turnbuckles h h, &c., and are fixedly connected at their upper ends to main lifting-bars G and G, which are in turn vertically adjustable by means of screws I and channels J, fastened to the airinlet pipes at, fl',Ct and a and are adj usted by hand-wheels K, &c.

The operation and advantage of these improvements are as follows: It is desirable to obstruct and retard the flow of water between the air-conduits in proportion to the amount of work required to be done, thus saving the water and not allowing it unduly to run to waste. It has also been found by experiment thatalarger proportionate amount of airis entrained by the water in its downward passage if this passage is so obstructed and retarded as to cause a vertical dept-h of water to be maintained above the junction of the air and water at the lower edge of the air-conduits, as an increased depth of water above this point gives an increased velocity of contact between the air and the water. been found to be objectionable to make this obstruction. by interposing a deflecting-piece between each adjacent airconduit, for the reason that such interposed piece increased the friction of the water without increasing the surface of contact between the air and the water. It also unduly decreases the velocity of the water without a correspondingly beneficialresult and breaks up or disperses the sheet of descending water, partly liberate ing the entrained air, and produces eddies.

It is obvious, therefore, that by lifting the main bars, (marked G and G,) causing the It has also lifting-rods g g, 850., to move in a Vertical po- 1 sition, and thus raising the outward ends of the links e and f, the opposite ends of these links, which are hinged to the sides of the air-conduits, will approach each other and cause the adjacent sides of any two adjacent air-conduits to approach each other, thus decreasing the spaces between the lower edges, and so decrease the water area between them and obstruct and retard the flow of the water by the lower edges thereof and at the same time allow an unbroken and undisturbed passage for the water beneath the lower edges thereof. It is also obvious that by changing the adjustment of the turnbuckles h h, &;c., the amount of adjustment between different air-conduits can be varied and also that when the liftingrods g g, &c., are in their lowest position, so that the connectinglinks 6 and fare horizontally in line with each other, that the hinged air-conduits are rigidly held in position one to the other.

Having fully described and explained this improvement, What I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is as follows:

1. In a hydraulic air-compressing apparatus, the combination with a water-passage of submerged air-chambers, air-inlet pipes connected to said chambers and horizontally-disposed adjustable airconduits leading from the chambers, and spanning the water -passage, substantially as described.

2. In a hydraulic air-compressing apparatus, the combination with a water-passage of submerged air-chambers, air-inlet pipes connected to said chambers, and horizontally-disposed air-conduits leading from said chambers andspanning the water-passage, consisting of a plurality of pieces operatively hinged together at the upper portion thereof, so as to vary the area of the water-passage between them, substantially as described.

3. In a hydraulic air-compressing apparatus, the combination with a Water-passage of submerged air-chambers, air-inlet pipes connected to said chambers, horizontally disposed adjustable airconduits leading from the chambers, and spanning the water-passage, and operatively connected with means for varying the adjustment of said air-conduits, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM OLIVER WEBBER.

Witnesses:

AMY F. WILLIAMSON, MARION SMITH. 

